Xu Xiutang

Xu Xiutang

• Master of Chinese Arts and Crafts (1993, 3rd Session)

• Master of Chinese Ceramic Art (2003, Inaugural Session)

• Senior Craft Artist

• Member of the Chinese Artists Association

• Researcher at the Jiangsu Provincial Institute of Culture and History

• Representative Inheritor of National Intangible Cultural Heritage Projects

• Outstanding Inheritor of Chinese Folk Culture

• Visiting Researcher at the Craft Art Institute of the Chinese National Academy of Arts

• Honorary President of the Jiangsu Ceramic Art Committee

• Honorary Director of the Jiangsu Pottery Art Professional Committee

• Honorary President of the Jiangsu Tea Culture Association

• Vice President of the Wuxi Tea Culture Research Association

• Editor-in-Chief of Yixing Zisha

• Visiting Professor at Jiangnan University

• Visiting Professor at Wuxi Institute of Arts and Technology

Awarded:

• Global Chinese Culture and Art Heritage Award

• Lifetime Achievement Award in Chinese Arts and Crafts

• Lifetime Achievement Award in Chinese Ceramic Art, Design, and Education

Biography

Born in 1937 in Yixing’s Shushan, a renowned Zisha (purple clay) family, Xu Xiutang began his apprenticeship under the famous Zisha carving artist Ren Ganting in 1954. In 1955, he joined the Shushan Pottery Cooperative (the predecessor of Yixing Zisha Craft Factory). In 1958, he studied at the Chinese Folk Sculpture Research Class and later trained in color sculpture at the studio of "Clay Figurine Zhang" (Zhang Jinghu). In 1995, he founded the Changle Pottery Studio.

Publications

Xu has authored several influential works, including:

• Chinese Zisha

• Master’s Perspective: Xu Xiutang on Zisha

• Zisha Craftsmanship

• Illustrated Guide to Yixing Zisha Techniques
  Published by prestigious publishers such as Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, Shanghai Lexicographical Publishing House, Zhejiang People's Publishing House, and Shanghai Calligraphy and Painting Publishing House.

Major Exhibitions & Events

• 2013: The Complete Works of Chinese Arts and Crafts Masters – Xu Xiutang Volume was launched by the Chinese National Academy of Arts, accompanied by an exhibition and seminar on Xu’s Zisha masterpieces in Beijing.

• June 2015: Held the "Ten Fingers Create Wonders" – Xu Xiutang Art Exhibition at Shanghai Duoyunxuan Art Gallery.

Representative Works

• Auspicious Teapot (Xiang Cheng Hu)

• Phoenix Hu Pot (He Feng Hu)

• The Eighteen Arhats

• The Strange Monk Who First Created Pottery (Shi Tao Yi Seng)

• Noble Series: Clean Hands (Liang Xiu Qing Feng)

• Carved Floral Zisha Ware